New Beginnings
by Cheerchic
Summary: *Final chapter up- effects of trial* Please r&r-40 reviews or bust!
1. Beginnings

Chapter 1: Beginnings  
Summary: A new girl joins the squad. She is looking for a new start and a better life then what she had known.   
  
"Hi, I'm Val. What's your name?"  
"Hi, I'm Nikki."  
"Nikki...You're Alex's niece aren't you?"  
"Yeah, I think we worked together for a couple of weeks a couple of years ago."  
"I remember...So what brings you to Kingsport?"  
"Well...my parents were killed in a car accident about a month ago. Alex took custody of me."  
"I'm so sorry. How are you holding up?" Val asked giving me a hug.  
"I'm doing okay. It's a rough transition though. Alex and my parents are completely different, so it's really hard."  
Tyler and Hank walk into the rec room.  
"Hey guys, this is Nikki. She's Alex's niece."  
"Nice to meet you. I'm Tyler and this is Hank."  
"Hi, nice to meet you," I said forcing myself to smile.  
Alex walked in.  
"Oh good, everyone's here. Wait a minute, where's Jamie?"  
"Detention, where else?" Tyler said.  
"Sounds like me," I said.  
"Okay, well, as I'm sure you already know, this is my niece Nikki. She's going to be working with you guys from now on. Nikki, could you go help Brooke please?"  
"Sure," I said leaving.  
"I don't know how much she's told you, but you need to really look out for her. Her parents died a month ago in a car crash. She's living with me now. You need to make her as comfortable as possible, okay?  
"Sure."  
"No problem."  
"Got it."  
"Okay, and could you clue Jamie in when he gets here?"  
"Sure," Hank said.  
"Thank you," Alex said leaving.  
I walked back into the rec room completely unaware of what Alex had told them.  
"So, how long are you visiting Alex?" Hank asked.  
"I'm not exactly visiting. My parents were killed in a car crash. I'm living with Alex now."  
"Oh, I'm so sorry."  
"I'm actually doing okay, It's kind of a hard transition though."  
"Hey, you're a cheerleader aren't you?" Val asked.  
"Yeah, I love it. It's weird not doing it though."  
"How much training do you have?" Hank asked.  
"I'm working for my EMT Intermediate certification. On my old squad I helped make a lot of the decisions."  
"Cool, you should fit in really well."  
"Especially if you like pulling pranks," Jamie said coming in.  
"You're looking at the girl who rearranged Alex's entire office a year and a half ago. Everything was switched from one side of the room to the other and upside down. I also rearranged all his file cabinets."  
"So you're the one who did that!" Tyler said.  
"It took us a week to fix everything!" Hank said.  
"I don't think I've ever seen Alex so mad or surprised at one time!" Val said.  
"Oh, you should have seen him when he figured out it was me!"  
"Hi, I'm Jamie," he said sitting down next to me, "I think we're going to get along just great!"  
We laughed.  
"So what are you doing around here?"  
"Well, my parents were killed in a car crash. I'm living with my Uncle Alex now."  
"Oh, I'm sorry."  
"Thanks. I think thing's are going to be better here then they were in Chicago."  
The alarm went off.  
"Let's do this," Hank said standing up.  
We hurried to the ambulance.  
Things are definitely going to be better here, I thought to myself.  
  
This is my first Fanfic and I plan to add more soon.  
  
Well, what do you think? Let me know. I love getting reviews.  
  



	2. An Unexpected Surprise

Chapter 2: An Unexpected Surprise  
Summary: No summary for this chapter. Sorry!  
  
"Wow, talk about a long day!" Jamie said.  
"No kidding!"  
It was the next day and Jamie and I were walking to the station.  
"Well, I better go talk to Alex."  
"See you latter."  
"Where have you been?" Alex said pouncing on me as soon as I entered his office.  
"Detention."  
"What! It's your first day and you got detention already? How'd you manage that?"  
"Ask Jamie," I said sarcastically.  
"Jamie!" Alex yelled.  
"What?" He said coming into the office.  
"How did Nikki get detention?"  
"I pulled a prank on a teacher and Nikki got blamed for it because she was right there and I was hiding."  
"Okay," Alex said trying not to laugh, "How long do you have detention for?"  
"The rest of the week."  
"Okay, get to work. You two are already late.  
"At least we don't have to work all night," Jamie said smiling, "the oncall squad should be here soon."  
"No kidding. You know what stinks though?"  
"What?"  
"I didn't do anything!"  
"Welcome to the dark side. This kind of stuff happens a lot. Don't worry about it."  
"Thanks. You know what? We should pull some prank on Alex."  
"Good idea."  
"Hey, there you are!" Val said walking up. "I know where Jamie's been, but where have you been?"  
"Detention. I got blame for something Jamie did!"  
"That stinks! Oh, I almost forgot. Some guy named Eric was here looking for you."  
"Eric? Oh my gosh! I haven't seen him in over a month," I said trying to hide my fear.  
There are some thing no one can know, I thought to myself. Ever!  
  
Let me know what you think. I love getting reviews!  



	3. Blast From the Past

Chapter 3: Blast From the Past  
Summary: A member of the squad is in trouble. Can her friends help her before it's too late?  
  
"Eric!" I said throwing my arms around him.  
"Hey sweetie," he said holding me close.  
It was later that night and the oncall squad had arrived at the station to start their shift.  
"Alex, this is my boyfriend Eric from Chicago. Eric, this is my uncle, Alex."  
It was hard to keep a smile on my face. I had to do it to keep anyone from suspecting something.  
"So, you want to go out tonight?"  
I nodded.  
"Okay," Alex finally said, "be home by ten."  
"Okay."  
"Hey Nikki, can you help me really fast?" Val asked.  
"Sure, I'll be right back," I said following her.  
"Hey, what's going on? You're acting really weird."  
"It's nothing really, I'm just nervous about tonight."  
"If you don't want to go, say so."  
"Wish I had that option," I said forcing myself to smile. "I got to go, see you later."  
"Bye," Val called after me.  
  
"Eric, no."   
He had been kissing me.   
"I'm tired, I want to go home, " I said pulling away.  
"I'm not taking you home yet," he said pulling me closer.  
"I said no!" I said pulling away.  
"Do as I tell you," he said slapping me across the cheek.  
"I'll walk home, and please stay away from me!"  
I got out of the car and tan to Val's without looking back.  
  
"Come in, what happened to you?"  
"He hit me," I said wiping away the tears.  
"Would you like some tea?" Val asked.  
"I'd love some."  
"I'll be right back."  
Val went into the kitchen and came back with two cups of tea.  
"Is that why you were nervous about tonight?"  
I nodded.  
"Has this happened before?"  
"Yeah. That's why I wanted to leave Chicago."  
"Wow, I'm so sorry Nikki."  
"Thanks for listening."  
"No problem...you really need to tell Alex. It's abuse and you really need to protect yourself."  
"Alex will have a meltdown!"  
"Probably, but knowing him, he'll stay calm and take care of everything...then he'll have a meltdown! He's going to do everything he can to protect you."  
"I know, but I can't bring myself to face him. Not tonight, anyway."  
"Okay, why don't you cal Alex and tell him you're going to crash here tonight and then we'll talk to him tomorrow."  
"Okay. Thanks Val, you always know what to do."  
I picked up the phone and called Alex.  
At least there are people who care about me to help me through this, I thought to myself.  
  



	4. A Silence Broken

Chapter 4: A Silence Broken  
Summary: Sorry, I don't have one!  
Disclaimer: I don't own any of the characters in this story (except for Nikki). Disney does (I don't like them for canceling the show). Please don't use Nikki without my permission.  
Sorry this took so long! I've been really busy with a lot of stuff in my life lately!  
  
"Alex, can we talk?"  
"Sure, what's up?"  
It was the next afternoon and Val and I were in Alex's office.  
"Something happened last night," I started.  
Why does this have to be so hard? I thought to myself.  
"That reminds me, why were you acting so weird yesterday?"  
"I'm scared of him," I said looking away.  
"Why?"  
"He hit me," I said quietly.  
"Are you okay?"  
"I'm fine."  
"You were acting really weird...has this happened before?"  
"It's the main reason I left Chicago."  
"I have to report this," he said finally. "It's abuse and it's serious business."  
"I know."  
"Why didn't you tell me earlier?"  
"I was too upset to talk about it last night."  
"Val, why don't you get to work?"  
"Okay," she said leaving.  
"Why didn't you report this earlier?"  
"No one cared. Where I'm from it's a part of life. Since no cared enough to stop me from seeing him, there was nothing I could do."  
"Well, I forbid you from ever seeing him again."  
I nodded.  
"Second of all, I am upset because you didn't report this. You're an EMT and you know it's wrong...you've seen what can happen! I am upset because of your lack of judgement."  
"I know."  
"I'm going to report this. I want you to stay away from him."  
"Okay."  
"Now, would you please get to work?"  
"Okay," I said leaving. "Thank you," I said turning around again.  
"You're welcome."  
I left the office and headed for the rec room.  
"Hey Nikki."  
"Hey," I said smiling.  
"How was your date?" Jamie asked.  
Tyler and Hank were with him.  
"What is this? An interrogation?"  
"Sorry, we're just curious. You weren't acting like yourself yesterday."  
"Well, is you must know, I had an awful time."  
"What happened?"  
Val nodded that it was okay to tell them.  
"He hit me," I said quietly.  
"He what?" Hank exclaimed. "Are you okay?"  
Hank always seems to take control of situations! I thought.  
"I'm fine."  
"Has this happened before?" he said slowly.  
"It's the main reason I left Chicago."  
"Alex knows, doesn't he?"  
"Val and I talked to him earlier."  
"I'm sorry but no guy has the right to do that," Jamie said looking at me.  
"Thanks guys. I'm going to need your support now more then ever."   
  



	5. Missed Detention

Chapter 5: Missed Detention  
Summary: Don't have one- sorry!  
Disclaimer: I don't own IAHB characters (except for Nikki)...  
  
"Nikki!" Alex yelled.  
"Yeah?" I said coming into the office.  
"The court date has been scheduled for next week. Do you have the pictures?"  
"Yes I do."  
"Can I see them?"  
"Sure," I said handing him a few pictures." I have more at home."  
He looked at the pictures that showed bruises on my arms, legs and face.  
"This is so wrong," he said looking up. "I can't believe you took this!"  
"I couldn't exactly get out of it."  
"Why no?" he said raising his voice.  
"I already told you, since no one stopped me, I was forced into going out with him. I wish someone cared enough to stop me.  
"Well I think I've taken care of that."  
"Yeah, you did."  
"Don't say "yeah."  
"Sorry."  
"No one can force you into anything," he said after a minute.  
"You don't get it," I said shaking my head.  
"Explain it to me," he said sitting on the desk in front of me.  
"You have no idea how many times I've tried to break up with him. Every time the same thing happens. I tell him to stay away from me, he does for a few days and then he brings me a rose and tells my parents he wants to take me out. Since they didn't care, they shoved me out the door and everything starts over again," I said brushing away the tears." I have spent so much time arguing with them about it that I finally lost the energy to fight with them anymore."  
"You're telling me that your parents forced you into going out with him?"  
"Isn't that what I just said?" I said sarcastically.  
"Drop the sarcasm," he said sharply.  
"Sorry."  
"Did you really try to get out of it?"  
"Do you seriously think that I want to be hit? He went to my parents because he knew they would shove me out the door. They've threatened me if I didn't go!"  
"Okay, I don't know what to do here. You made some really bad choices. You could have reported it!" he said starting my pace.  
"Do you have any idea how bad things would have been if I had? My parents...him. I can't even begin to imagine it...I don't want to!"   
"Okay, you made some poor choices and I'm going to punish you for it. I am not happy about this at all," he said sitting down.  
"I understand."  
"Okay, here's the deal. After the verdict next week we're going to have a long talk about this whole thing and decide what to do. I still need to think about this."  
"Okay."  
"Now, get to work."  
"Okay," I said turning to leave.  
"Nikki, wait a sec," he said stopping me.  
"Yeah?"  
"Nikki!"  
"Sorry!"  
"I'm sorry, but I've got to know...has he raped you?"  
"Um, no he hasn't, but he has tried. That was usually what the arguments were about."  
"Thank you," he said putting his head in his hands.  
"No problem," I said leaving.  
"Hey Nikki."  
"Hey guys," I said collapsing on the couch.  
"Are you in trouble with Alex?"  
"Yeah, he's probably going to kill me next week."  
"Are you nervous?"  
"The only thing I'm nervous about is if Eric's not guilty."  
"He should be guilty," Val said.  
"Yeah he should be, but the question is will he be guilty."  
We were all quiet for a minute.  
"Hey Nikki, Carlson's mad at you for missing detention."  
"Oh man, guess I've got detention for the next month!"  
"Minimum!" Jamie said.  
"Hey, this is your fault!"  
"Sorry! I owe you one."  
"You have no idea!"  
We glared at each other for a minute and then started laughing.   
  
  
  



	6. A Long Night

Chapter 6: A Long Night  
  
Summary: Visit with Carlson, LONG shift and, you asked for it, explanation on Catie (finally)!  
A/N: Sorry this took so long, I haven't been able to access the site until yesterday! Is anybody still reading this? I didn't get many reviews for the last chapter.  
  
"Nikki, Mr. Carlson would like to see you," my Spanish teacher said handing me a hall pass.  
"Thank you," I said stepping out of the room.  
"Ah, Nikki," Mr. Carlson said looking up. "Why don't you sit down?"  
I sat down quietly.  
"Relax, you're not in that much trouble."  
I smiled  
"That's better. Okay, well first of all, how are you adjusting?"  
"I'm doing okay."  
"You're part of the EMT program, aren't you?"  
"Yeah, Alex is my uncle."  
"That's good. Now my second question. Where, may I ask, were you yesterday?"  
"Let me give you the reader's digest version. Boyfriend from Chicago, physical abuse, and a court date next week...I was talking to Alex about everything. About five minutes after I got there I realized I was supposed to be here. I totally forgot, I'm sorry."  
"You know what, don't worry about it. You're new here so I'll let you off the hook this time with a warning. Don't do it again, okay?"  
"No problem. Thank you."  
"Are you going to miss any school next week?"  
"A couple of days, probably."  
"Don't worry about homework, you can make it up when you get back."  
"Thank you."  
He signed my pass and gave it back to me.  
"Okay, why don't you head back to class?"  
"Okay," I said leaving the room.  
I ran into Jamie in the hall on the way to class.  
"Hey, did you talk to Carlson yet?"  
"Yeah, he let me off with a warning."  
"No fair! He'd never let me off."  
"I'm new."  
"You're lucky is what you are!"  
"I better get back to class."  
"See you later."  
  
"Man, the rain sure is coming down!"  
"No kidding!"  
"I don't get this Spanish worksheet!"  
"Let me see," Val said sitting next to me.  
We started working on homework.  
Hank, Tyler and Jamie came in and started doing homework.  
"Hey Jamie, I got a letter from Catie today," Val said looking up.  
"Catie Roth?" I asked.  
Val nodded.  
"How's she doing?"  
"She's doing great but misses Kingsport. She said her mom loves her new job."  
"That's good. Does she like Washington, DC?" Jamie asked.  
"She loves it. She said she loves living in a big city where shops don't close at 9 every night."  
"That's good. I'm glad she's settling in okay."  
"Yeah, she said school's actually going okay. She also said she's glad you two are friends now because she's got someone else now."  
"Who, Catie?" Tyler asked.  
"The one and only."  
"Who would have thought?" Tyler commented.  
"I know. She's got a lot more confidence then she used to."  
"That's good. I'm glad she's happy," Jamie said.  
"Hey guys," Alex said coming in, "I need all of you to stay on duty tonight. The roads are a mess and the National Weather Service is advising everyone to stay off the roads, which means no reinforcements."  
"No problem," Hank said.  
"Hey Alex, how's your back?" Jamie asked.  
We all looked at each other and tried not to laugh.  
"It's okay right now, but I'm leaving soon," he said glaring at Jamie. "I want you to stay here for dinner tonight as well," he said leaving.  
"Well, so much for Chinese," Tyler said.  
The alarm went off.  
"So much for dinner!" Hank exclaimed.  
We hurried to the ambulance.  
"What do we have?" Tyler asked.   
"MVA, not too serious though."  
"Good."  
We got to the accident and check vitals.  
Val and I moved over to a girl with her leg bent back.  
"Hank! She's unconscious," Val called.  
"Nikki, get the stretcher and splint. Val, help her."  
"On it!"  
Val and I ran to the ambulance and grabbed the stretcher and leg splint.  
We supported her leg and splinted it, then we moved her onto the stretcher and moved into the ambulance. We drove to the hospital and dropped off the patient.  
"I'm soaked!"  
"No kidding," I said wringing water out of my hair.  
We were on our way to the station when we were called over the radio.  
"Vehicle 156, do you copy? Over."  
"This is vehicle 156, over," Hank said into the radio.  
"24 year old adult male, respiratory arrest on 2420 Horton Road. Can you respond? Over," the dispatcher said.  
"This is vehicle 156. We're on it," Hank said turning on the siren, "ETA 3 minutes, over."  
We arrived at the house and grabbed the equipment bags and stretcher and hurried into the house.  
  
5 calls later we were finally back at the station.  
"Hey guys, I know it's late, but we need to finish chores. Alex will kill us if we don't get it done."  
"Okay," I said standing up."  
There was a loud clap of thunder and then the power went out leaving us in darkness.  
"What was that?" I said sitting down again.  
"The power must be out," Hank said.  
"Well, duh!"  
"I'll find a flashlight," Jamie said feeling around the counters in the rec room. "Oh, here's one."  
Jamie brought the flashlight to the couches.  
"How are we going to get any calls?"  
"Our pagers still work," Tyler said.  
"Maybe we should call Alex," Val said.  
"Not a bad idea...Nikki?" Hank said slowly.  
"Oh no! Alex is going to be mad enough that we're calling him in the middle of the night. If I call him, well, it won't be good, but if you call him," I said looking at Hank, "he'll know something's up. Please?"  
"Fine, I'll call him," Hank said, "but you owe me big!"  
"Fine. While you talk to him, you might want to mention that we couldn't finish chores."  
"Fine," Hank said taking another flashlight and left to call Alex.  
"Okay guys," Hank said coming back in, "Alex said to hang in there and don't worry about chores, as long as we finish them before we leave tomorrow. He also said we'd better get some sleep while we can."  
"Okay."  
We finished picking up the rec room then went to bed.   
  
Well, what do you think? Please r&r. 


	7. The Drama Begins

Chapter 7: The Drama Begins   
  
Summary: The trial begins   
Disclaimer: Don't own anything except Nikki...   
A/N: Thank you to Collen DeWitt for all your help!   
  
"The prosecution calls Nikki Freeman," Linda Montgomery, my lawyer called.   
I made my way up to the witness stand.   
"In your own words Nikki, please tell the jury what happened the night of November 10th."   
"Eric and I went out to dinner and then when we were driving around Eric pulled over and started kissing me. I told him to stop and pulled away from him. Eric told me that he wasn't ready to take me home and pulled me closer. When I pulled away again Eric told me to do what he said and slapped me."   
"The prosecution submits Exhibit A," Linda said signaling for the roll of pictures on the projector to be shown. "Nikki, how many times has Eric hit you?" she asked when the roll was done.   
"Um, 10 to 12 times in eight months."   
"Thank you, Nikki. No further questions. Your witness," she said to the defense.   
"Eric hit you between 10 and 12 times, right?"   
"Yes, that's correct."   
"If it bothered you so much why didn't you do anything to stop it?"   
"I tried to but no one in Chicago cared enough to help me stop it. I honestly didn't expect that anyone here would care either, but they did. And they helped me stop what should have been stopped long before."   
"So you're saying that this is all Eric's fault, that you had nothing to do with the problem."   
"Well I'm sure I...I mean yes. It is all Eric's fault."   
Oh man! Now I've done it! I thought to myself.   
"Did you ever say anything to make Eric mad at you?"   
"I'm sure I did, but that gives him no reason to hit me."   
"Did you ever make any gestures that suggested you still liked him after the first time he hit you?"   
"Yes I did, but only because I didn't think it was typical."   
"Did you show him you still liked him after the second time he hit you?"   
"Yes I did because I knew he loved me, or I thought he did anyways."   
"Thank you Nikki. No further questions. You may step down."   
"The court will take a recess and begin again tomorrow morning," the judge said.   
We all rose as the judge left. As we walked out into the hall Alex walked over to me.   
"Don't say anything! Just don't say anything!" I snapped, angry at myself for slipping up. "Damn!" I said throwing my hands in the air as I walked into the bathroom.   
I slowly cooled my face with a wet paper towel as I started to cry.   
"It's okay Nikki," Val said walking over to me.   
"No it's not! I cracked and Davis made me look awful because of it."   
"You did the best you could," she said slowly.   
"No I didn't, but thanks for trying to help. Unfortunately nothing's going to help this."   
"It really is okay Nikki," Linda said coming over to Val and I, "Josh knows they've lost the case, but he's trying to get the easiest sentence. In order to do that he had to make you seem at fault somehow. He would have done it anyway, you just made it shorter and probably easier for yourself in the long run. Josh told me to tell you that he's sorry for making you so upset and that he was just dong his job."   
"Thank you," I said forcing a small smile. "I feel a little bit better."   
"Come on," Linda said leading the way to the door.   
Val stayed close by me as we walked out the door.   
Alex looked at me steadily. I knew he was disappointed about what happened and about my reaction.   
"I don't want to talk about it."   
"I do. Look Nikki," he said pulling me aside, "it was going to happen eventually. It's not your fault. I know you're upset but you didn't need to react like that. It's not that bad."   
"Yes it is! I slipped and Davis made me look awful because I slipped. You don't understand how bad it is. You've never been in my position!"   
"Nikki, calm down," he said gently. "It's going to be okay."   
"Nikki, we have to go. We've got a call."   
I sighed and followed Val, Tyler, Hank and Jamie out the door.   
"What do we have?" Tyler asked Hank as we climbed in the ambulance.   
"MVA," he said slowly. "Ten cars involved. Multiple serious injuries."   
"Oh man," I said leaning my head against the seat, "I hate these calls."   
We reached the scene and climbed out. There were already five ambulances there. Val and I moved to a girl with a cracked skull and started treating the bleeding.   
"Carrie!" I exclaimed.   
"You know her?" Val asked getting another gauze pad.   
"We cheered together in Chicago. She's like, one of my best friends."   
"She's got a weak pulse," Hank said checking her vitals while Val and I worked on controlling the bleeding.   
"Come on Carrie, you have to get better," I said gently.   
"Nikki, go get a Saline IV." Hank told me.   
"On it!" I ran to the ambulance and got the IV bag.   
"Nikki, I said Saline. This is wrong."   
"Sorry," I said taking the bag from him and ran back to the ambulance and grabbed a Saline IV.   
Could today get any worse? I thought to myself as I ran back to Val and Hank.   
We moved Carrie to the ambulance and drove to the hospital. Carrie's pulse was getting weaker and weaker.   
"Don't die Carrie," I said softly, "I need you."   
We dropped Carrie off at the hospital. Hank, Tyler and Jamie started cleaning the ambulance while Val came with me into the waiting room. Tyler, Hank and Jamie joined us when they were done.   
"Any word," Jamie asked.   
I shook my head. "Not yet."   
The doctor walked into the waiting room and walked over to us.   
"I'm sorry Nikki," he said slowly, "we lost her. She lost too much blood."   
"Thank you," I said wiping the tears from my eyes.   
"Would you like to see her one last time?"   
"Yes I would. Thank you," I said starting to follow him.   
"Would you like me to come with you?" Jamie asked me.   
"That's okay. You should stay here, but thank you for offering."   
"No problem."   
I went with the doctor to where Carrie was.   
"Thank you for everything," I said hugging Carrie. "I'll tell your parents you got the best treatment possible. Be sure to give my parents a hug for me." I looked at her one last time.   
When I was done I went with the doctor and gave him Carrie's parents contact information and then gave him mine.   
"Be sure to let me know if you need anything," he said me.   
"Thank you for everything, I might take you up on that."   
"No problem."   
I went back to the waiting room.   
Hank, Tyler, Jamie, Val and I walked out to the ambulance.   
"Everything's going to be okay," Jamie said, pulling me aside.   
"Eventually," I said climbing into the ambulance.   
When we drove to the station. When we got there Alex walked over to us. He noticed how quiet and stressed we were.   
"Rough one?" he asked.   
"MVA. 3 dead including Nikki's friend from Chicago. 5 others were critical." Hank said.   
"Jamie, empty the trash. We'll help with the rest later. Call critique, rec room, 10 minutes," he said to the rest of us.   
"I don't want to talk about it right now," I said to Alex. "Today really can't be any worse," I said hitting my head on the wall. I started to cry again.   
"You know where to find me if you do want to talk about it."   
"I know, thank you," I said walking inside.   
"Okay guys," Hank said when we had all assembled. "We handled that call very well, all things considering."   
"Except the IV bag," I said. "I must've given a Saline IV a thousand times and I couldn't get it right!"   
"It's okay Nikki, don't worry about it. It's been a rough day."   
"How are you doing?" Tyler asked.   
"Great!" I said sarcastically. "How do you thing I'm doing? I screwed up in court today, I gave Hank the wrong IV bag and I lost my best friend." I felt the tears in my eyes.   
"It's eventually going to be okay. Today is over. We're just going to take it one day at a time. If we need to, we'll put you on the DL to give you a chance to relax."   
We were all quiet. There was nothing left to say.   
  
Well what do you think? Please r&r. More soon...


	8. The Drama Continues

Chapter 8: The Drama Continues  
  
Summary: The trial continues  
Disclaimer: Don't own anything except Nikki...  
  
"The defense call Eric Tompson," Josh Davis, Eric's lawyer called.  
It was the next morning and the trial had begun again. Everyone was hoping that it would be over that day.  
"What kind of activities are you involved in at school Eric?"  
"National Honor Society, football and drama."  
"Do you enjoy school?"  
"Very much so."  
I was angry. Josh was making Eric look like an excellent student and role model.  
"Eric, in your own words, please tell the jury what happened the night of November 10th."  
"I picked up Nikki after she finished her shift at the station and took her out to dinner. When we were driving around after dinner I pulled over and starting kissing her. She pulled away and told me to stop. I told her I didn't want to take her home yet and started kissing her again. When she pulled way again I told her to do what I said and hit her."  
"Did Nikki ever do anything that made you mad at her."  
"More times then I can count."  
"So you're saying that she usually deserved what she got?"  
"Yes, that's correct."  
I clenched, the unclenched my fist. I was angry that Eric could say such bad things.  
"Thank you Eric, no further questions. Your witness," he said to Linda.  
"Eric, where do you get the idea that physical abuse is okay? It is against the law," Linda was just as mad as I was.  
"Chicago is a lot different from the rest of the country. In the ghetto it is an accepted way of life. Nikki knew what she was getting into."  
"As I understand it, before Nikki, you've never hit a girl. Why did you continue to go out with her when she expressed she never wanted to see you again."  
"Nikki's parents didn't care about her, so for once in my life I had power over someone."  
"Why do you feel you have to have power over a girl?"  
"In Chicago if a guy has power over a girl, especially a white girl, they're respected. Nikki's white, so by having power over her I'm automatically respected."  
"Thank you, Eric. No further questions. You may step down."  
Eric went back to his seat.  
"Now that we've heard from both sides, the court will take a recess while the jury makes its decision."   
We all stood up as the judge and jury left the room. I started walking to the hall, talking to Linda.  
"I could have killed Eric for what he said."  
"I know. It took every shred of my dignity as a lawyer not to reach over and strangle him."  
"Nikki, can I talk to you?" Alex said walking over to us.  
"Of course."  
Alex led me by the arm to one of the benches in the back to the room. We were alone.  
"I have a couple of questions for you."  
"Shoot."  
"Did you really know what you were getting into?"  
"No, of course not. All of the guys at our school in Chicago have a reputation and if they've hit someone, you know. Like Linda said, before me Eric's never touched a girl in his life. So no, I didn't know what I was getting into...or I wouldn't have gone out with him in the first place."  
"Okay, my second question is how is Chicago so different from here?"  
I started laughing.   
"What's so funny?"  
"Asking how Chicago is different from Kingsport is like asking how the Sahara Desert is different from the Amazon Rain Forest. They're polar opposites. I think that's the one thing Eric and I actually agree on."  
"So, how are they different?"  
"Well first, Kingsport seems way too safe. Drive by shootings, rape, physical abuse and drugs are normal in Chicago. In Kingsport, everyone freaks out if anything like that happens. And two, the guys in Chicago are always on a power trip, including Eric who I didn't find out about until to late. Here guys respect girls and treat them with respect."  
"Do you agree with any of it?"  
"Not at all. I just try to keep from getting involved, which worked until last June. "  
"I still don't understand this that much."  
"Well you don't understand me either," I said matter-of-factly.  
"What do you mean?"  
"In order to understand me and this whole case, not only do you need to put yourself in my shoes, but you also need to understand how I grew up, which unfortunately is in a world where no one cared about me."  
"How are you such a strong person when no one around you cared?"  
"You learn to trust yourself and God. Everyone else will burn you, so it's the only way to survive."  
"Okay, I also want to talk about what happened last night. I read the paperwork and also talked to Hank about the call. What happened?"  
"I don't know. I must've given a Saline IV a thousand times and I couldn't get it right! You know what the worst thing is though? Carrie was coming to support me during the trial and she was killed!"  
"Hank thinks I need to put you on the DL for a week. I don't think Hank's too far off on this one."  
"What?" I was completely shocked I was hearing this from Alex. "You've never allowed me to miss a day of work in my life, and now you're saying you want to take me off the schedule for a week. You feeling okay?"  
"I'm fine, but you're not. Hank's right, you've had a really hard couple of months. Between your parents, this case and the call last night it's been too much for you, hasn't it?"  
"Yeah, it has been."  
"Nikki..." he said smiling.  
"Oh sorry! That one's going to take awhile."  
"Okay, following Hank's advice, I'm putting you on the DL for a week. You need some time to relax and figure everything out. We'll see how you're doing after that and decide what to do from there."  
"Okay."  
"I also think I'm going to ground you for a week because of your poor decision in not reporting this earlier and because of your reaction yesterday. I'm still not happy about that."  
"Okay, I guess that's fair." I said standing up.  
"Why don't you go freshen up. I think we're going to start soon."  
"Okay," I said walking into the hall and over to the bathroom.  
"Hey, how did it go with Alex?" Val asked.  
"Good. Hank told Alex to put me on the DL for a week."  
"He did? What did Alex say?"  
"He said that Hank was right. I'm so surprised though. Alex has never allowed me to miss a day of work in my life."  
"I can't believe Hank told Alex that. That's not like him at all."  
"I know, but Alex needed to hear it, and Alex listens to Hank. Alex also grounded me for a week."  
"Why?"  
"Mostly because of my reaction yesterday and also because I didn't report the case earlier."  
"I guess that's fair. Lets go."  
Val and I walked across the hall and into the court room. I went and sat down next to Linda.  
"Did you get anything to eat?" Linda asked.  
"No, I was talking to Alex the whole time. It's okay though, I'm not hungry anyways."  
"Okay..."she said uncertainly.  
Just then the bailiff called for us to stand up. We all stood as the judge and jury entered the room. The judge motioned for us to sit down.  
"Let's get right to business," The judge asked the jury to read its verdict.  
"We the jury find Eric Tompson guilty of all charges," the head juror read.  
"Thank you. Eric Tompson, this court finds you guilty on all charges of abusing Nikki Freeman and hearby sentence you to the maximum sentence of ten years without parole." The guard came and took Eric back to his cell. "This case is now closed," he said bringing down his gavel.  
We all stood as the judge left.  
"It's over," I said sighing with relief.  
"Congratulations," Josh said to Linda and I.  
"Thanks," I said smiling.  
"Hey Nikki, I'm sorry for making you so upset yesterday. I didn't mean to be so hard on you."  
"It's okay, Linda evened up that score a little bit today. I know you didn't mean to be that mean, it's no problem."  
"I'm glad you understand that. See you later."  
"Bye," Linda and I went back to where everyone was. "Hey guys."  
"Hey Nikki," Tyler said, "congratulations."  
"Thanks, I'm glad it's over."  
"Want to go get some ice cream to celebrate?"  
"Sure that sounds good."  
We walked out of the court house and outside.  
"Hey Nikki?"  
"Yeah, Hank?"  
"Look, I'm sorry for telling Alex to put you on the DL," he said quietly. "Val's right, I normally wouldn't ever do that. I'm just worried about you, that's all."  
"It's okay, I do need some time off. I'm not sure Alex would have listened to me anyways. He does listen to you though, so it's okay."  
"No it's not, it's not my place to tell Alex that kind of thing."  
"Did Val chew you out?"  
"Yes she did, and so did Tyler and Jamie when they found out. I really shouldn't have done it."  
"Hank, it's no problem. I understand why you did it. Just buy my ice cream and we'll call it even for now."  
"Okay, you also won't owe me for when I had to call Alex about the power outage. I really am sorry though."  
"It's okay, I forgive you."  
We all ordered our ice cream and then talked as we celebrated.  
"Hey Linda, thank you so much for everything. You've been a big help."  
"You're welcome, it's no problem. I'm always glad to help of my niece's friends. She gave me a lot of background information about what happened in Chicago which helped me with the case."  
"Well thank you again. You've helped so much."  
"You're welcome Nikki, I'm glad to help. Oh, I've got to go," she said looking at her watch. "See you later."  
"Bye," we all said.  
We finished our ice cream and went back to the station to finish our shift. 


	9. Forever Changed

Chapter 9: Forever Changed   
Summary: Nikki pushes away Jamie and everyone else around her (*muy trieste*)   
A/N: Final chapter...it's sad...sequel up soon...Wow! Am I really done?   
Disclaimer: Don't own anything except Nikki...   
  
Friday morning (a week after the case):   
"Nikki! Wait up!" Jamie called. "What's going on?"   
"Nothing," I said opening my locker.   
"Nikki," he said turning me towards him. "You've been avoiding me all week. What's going on?"   
"Nothing! I'm going to be late." I said closing my locker and walked away.   
"Nikki!" he called after me.   
I didn't listen. I just kept walking.   
  
"Hey Nikki," Tyler said as I sat in my desk for English.   
"Hey Tyler, hey Hank."   
"What's going on?"   
"Nothing."   
"Why have you been avoiding us?" Hank asked.   
"Shh, class is starting."   
Tyler and Hank exchanged bewildered looks.   
  
At lunch:   
"Hey Tyler, do know why Nikki has been avoiding me all week?"   
"She's not just avoiding you, she's avoiding Hank and I too."   
"Something's on her mind, and I want to know what it is. I hate to see her hurting like this."   
"So do I, I have a plan that might get her to open up to you though."   
"I'm open to all suggestions. "   
  
After school:   
"So are you coming to the track with me?" Val asked.   
"Of course. How else am I supposed to stay in shape for cheer tryouts in a couple of months?"   
Val and I walked to the track.   
"Why have you been so quiet lately? I've never seen you quiet or withdrawn!"   
"I don't know. It's hard to explain."   
"I'm all ears."   
"I guess, it's just that...I just can't trust guys right now. It seems like I'm on autopilot, and I can't feel anything. I'm actually cold, that's the one thing I feel. Cold."   
"You're afraid they're going to hurt you like Eric did."   
"Exactly."   
"Don't worry, Nikki. Tyler, Hank and Jamie won't hurt you. They're nothing like Eric. Jamie loves you, and it hurts him that you're pushing him away from you."   
"That's just it. I know he loves me, but, I don't know, I feel that I can't..."   
"...that you can't love him back," Val finished for me.   
"I guess."   
"Nikki, talk to him. Let him know what's going on. He hates seeing you hurting like this."   
"Nikki," Jamie said quietly, tapping me on the shoulder.   
As I turned around he handed me a bunch of flowers.   
"Why are you doing this to me? This is already hard enough," I said burying my head in the flowers.   
"Can we talk? Please?"   
"Sure."   
Jamie and I walked over to the bleachers and sat down.   
"Please tell me what's going on. I want to help you Nikki."   
"I don't mean to push you or Hank or Tyler away, it's just that...I don't feel I can trust guys right now..."   
"Because you think we're going to hurt you like Eric did."   
I nodded.   
"I love you, Nikki. I would never do anything to hurt you. You mean too much to me."   
"I know that. I know you love me...It's just that I don't feel I can love anyone," I said quietly.   
"Nikki, please don't push me away. I know you're hurting, and it's so hard for me to see you like this. You don't smile or laugh anymore and I miss it. I miss you. You're not the same person anymore. If you want to go slow, that's fine with me, but please don't push me away."   
"I don't know..."   
"If you don't want to go out right now, that's fine, but please let me be near you. You're a good friend to me and I want to be a good friend to me."   
"I'll try. Thank you for understanding."   
  
One week later at the station:   
"Alex, can we talk to you?"   
Hank, Jamie, Tyler and Val were at the station to talk to Alex about what had been going on before our shift started that night.   
"Of course. What's going on?"   
"We're worried about Nikki," Val said.   
"She's not herself anymore. She doesn't smile, she doesn't laugh and she hardly jokes around or hangs out with us anymore," Jamie said.   
"She's still working hard like always, maybe even better then normal. She never makes mistakes, but it's not the same," Hank said.   
"We miss her, the way she was before the trial. Not the way she is now," Tyler said.   
"I know, I've noticed it to. She's really quiet around the house and always keeps to herself, but what do you want me to do about it?"   
"We were wondering if you could talk to her. Try to get her to lighten up again. Val and I have already tried, but it hasn't made much difference."   
"Nikki's dealing with a lot right now. Just give her time, she'll snap out of it. It might take awhile though."   
"Alex, could you please try though? We're really worried about her. I don't know what's going on in her head, but I'm worried she might be thinking about suicide," Hank said.   
"Really?" Alex said sighing. "Of course I'll talk to her. In fact, send her in when she gets here."   
"Thank you, Alex."   
"No problem."   
Everyone left and started doing different odd jobs.   
"Hey Nikki."   
"Oh, hi Val. I'm not late am I?" I said noticing that everyone was already working.   
"Oh, no. Alex would like to see you in his office though."   
"Thanks," I said leaving the room.   
"No problem."   
"You wanted to see me?" I said knocking on Alex's door.   
"Yes I did," he said looking up. "Why don't you sit down?"   
I came in and sat down. Alex closed the door behind me.   
"We haven't talked in awhile. Look Nikki, I'm going to get right to the point. Everyone, including me, is worried about you. You haven't been yourself and it's obvious something's going on. You're not thinking about suicide are you?   
"What?" I exclaimed, "No, I'm not. The thought did cross my mind once, but I immediately pushed it aside. You know why?"   
"Why?"   
"Because of a promise I made to Carrie's mom. She's like a second mother to me, except for the fact that she actually cares. One night, after my parents were killed and I was staying with Carrie's family, I was looking out the window actually thinking about suicide. It seemed to be the only way to get away from the constant pain. Carrie's mom came in and somehow knew what I was thinking about. She turned me around and made me promise that no mater what I faced, I would never do it. I didn't say anything at first, so she took my face in her hands and made me look at her and then told me to promise her that. I made that promise to her, and its one I'm never going to break," I said wiping away the tears.   
"I'm so glad to hear you say that. Nikki, why are you pushing everyone away?"   
"I don't know...I just want to be alone."   
"Nikki, you can't keep doing this. It's making this harder on you then it needs to be. I put you on the DL so you could sort things out and get back to normal, not so that you could start pushing everyone away. Everyone misses you the way you were before the trial. I know you're working even harder then before, but I want you to be normal again."   
"Alex, nothing's normal anymore!"   
"I know, but things are going to be even better, especially now that you've taken care of Eric. Please promise me you'll stop withdrawing and start smiling again? You don't have to do anything major, but I just want to see you smiling again. Promise?"   
"I promise," I said forcing a small smile after a minute.   
"Thank you, now why don't you get to work?"   
"Okay," I said standing up and left the room again.   
I went outside to where Jamie was cleaning the ambulance.   
"Hey," I said quietly.   
"Hey," he suddenly turned the hose from the ambulance and sprayed me.   
"Jamie! I'm going to kill you!"   
A huge water fight erupted between everyone, and, for the first time in two weeks, I laughed.   
Alex watched everything from his office and smiled. 


End file.
